During the past 20 years, there has been a gradual decline in road accidents in Spain. However, at the same time, there has also been an increasing number of speed cameras installed. The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) now plans to increase the quantity of mobile speed detectors as they think these devices have played a significant role.
According to the terms of the tender notice obtained by Servimedia and published in the Official State Gazette (BOE), the DGT intends to spend over 1.2 million euros on 15 mobile radars.
Being movable speedometers, they will enable speed control both within Guardia Civil Traffic cars and at a fixed location atop a tripod, whether the vehicles are in motion or not.
Each of the radars costs around 78,000 euros and the organization considers that 15 is the appropriate amount to replace those that have become inoperative “due to obsolescence or irreparable breakdowns.”
The devices must include a dynamic speed-detector and a pre-installation device. To this is added the sensor, camera and processing unit, flash system, mechanical fastenings, tripod and tablet computer.
The new set of radars will be classified as light or heavy based on the minimum length required to distinguish between trucks and passenger automobiles. It is important to keep in mind that everyone has different boundaries that they must respect.
Furthermore, it is imperative that these mobile devices has the ability to identify the existence of cars that traverse the measurement area, including up to six lanes in both directions at the same time or separately.
For some time now, the DGT has changed part of the strategy designed to control speeding: it has increased the number of radars on secondary roads. In this work, mobile devices are very effective because they allow dynamic use in addition to static use.
Leaving aside the roads of Catalonia and the Basque Country, the DGT currently has 355 active radars at fixed points where they measure instantaneous speeds and 64 in sections to measure average speeds. Figures that will increase over the next three years with the installation of 150 new speedometers : 60% will be sectional and the rest will be fixed.
To them are added another 325 mobile radars operated by agents of the Traffic Group of the Guardia Civil (ATGC) and the DGT Air Resources Unit adds 11 helicopters equipped with Pegasus radars for aerial surveillance and control.
